Satisfy your appetite for restaurant-quality meals and skip the big bill. With a little advanced preparation and the Set & Forget Programmable Slow Cooker, a deliciously satisfying homemade dinner will be ready to eat when you walk in the door.

To make dinnertime easy, the Set & Forget Programmable Slow Cooker offers you three cooking choices: a program mode, a probe mode, and a manual mode. On busy days, program the cooking time and the Set & Forget Slow Cooker automatically shifts to keep warm when the cooking time is up. Cooking a large cut of meat like pot roast, chicken, or pork tenderloin? Insert the probe, set the desired meat temperature and the Set & Forget Slow Cooker automatically shifts to keep warm when the temperature is reached. For traditional slow cooking, manually select the high, low or warm temperature without setting a cooking time.

After you master all the cooking flexibility the Set & Forget Programmable Slow Cooker offers, you may want to take your meals on the road to parties or potlucks. But when it comes to toting hot meals along, spills can be a concern. With the travel-friendly Set & Forget Slow Cooker, messes aren't an issue. When you need to take home-cooked meal out of the house, the Set & Forget Slow Cooker's clip-locked, secure lid has a tight seal to help ensure that your shirt and your car arrive without a messy spill. In or out of the house, the Set & Forget Programmable Slow Cooker not only makes slow cooking easy, it has travel neatly wrapped up.

PRODUCT FEATURE BENEFITS

Three choices for easy, automatic cooking: program mode, probe mode, and manual mode

Probe mode is perfect for cooking large cuts of meat or for recipes that require food to reach a certain temperature

The thermometer probe reads the actual temperature of food as it cooks; the temperature is displayed on the slow cooker control panel

Power interrupt protection keeps slow cooker on during a brief power outage

PRODUCT USES

Using the Program Mode

If you'll be busy or away when your food is finished cooking, use the PROGRAM mode. It's easy. Simply input the amount of time your food needs to cook and select the HIGH or LOW heat setting. As food cooks, the illuminated display on the control panel will alternate between the heat setting and the remaining time. When the cooking cycle is complete, the Set & Forget Programmable Slow Cooker will automatically shift to WARM setting.

Using the Probe Mode

For many foods, especially large cuts of meat, the internal temperature is the best test for doneness. The temperature probe takes the guesswork out of slow cooking. Select the desired internal food temperature and the slow cooker will automatically shift to WARM once the temperature is reached. By using the cooking guide for the PROBE mode below, you can estimate the amount of time the food will need to cook:

Cooking Guide for Probe Mode:

NOTE: For 6-quart slow cooker only. Adjust the size and weight of food. If cooking dense vegetables (such as potatoes or other root vegetables) with meats, check for doneness when desired meat temperature is reached. These types of vegetables may take longer to cook when cooked with meats/foods such as those listed in the Cooking Guide above.

Using the Manual Mode

On days when you want to keep things simple, you can simply select between the HIGH and LOW heat setting to cook your food. When your food is ready, turn the unit OFF or select the WARM setting until you're ready to serve your food.

SLOW COOKER TIPS

If you're not familiar with slow cooking, there are a few things you should know about this method of cooking. First, how high you fill the crock (sometimes called the insert pan, stoneware, cookware or vessel) is important. To prevent overcooking, the crock should be filled half-full to no more than one inch from the rim. However, this does not mean to fill the crock with liquid. If cooking soups or stews, leave a 2-inch (5 cm) space between the top of the crock and the food so the recipe can come to a simmer.

Secondly, if you lift the lid during cooking, your cooking time will increase due to heat loss. Unless your recipe specifically calls for stirring, resist lifting the lid. Last but not least, if you want to store leftovers after cooking, do NOT place the entire crock in the refrigerator since contents will take too long to cool. Instead, divide leftovers into smaller containers and place in the refrigerator.

Cooking Meat

A slow cooker is great for foods that are not naturally tender, such as meat with a lot of connective tissue. These are the least-expensive cuts but also the most flavorful. Like braising, slow cookers tenderize meat slowly as it cooks. If you choose cuts such as chuck roast, pork butt, short ribs or chicken thighs, you won't be disappointed with the results. If fat is an issue, refrigerate the contents after cooking and skim off the extra fat before serving. Note: you must thaw frozen meat and poultry before adding it to the slow cooker.

Cooking Side Dishes or Dessert

Main courses, soups and "one-pot" meals are not the only things that slow cookers are great for preparing. They are also perfect for making side dishes and dessert, especially when your main oven is full. Check out the recipes found at HamiltonBeach.com that were developed and tested by the culinary experts in the Hamilton Beach Test Kitchen.

How to Adapt Recipes

You can convert your favorite recipes to slow cooker recipes if you learn these important differences first:

Liquids do not evaporate in a slow cooker. So unless you are cooking rice, pasta, or beans, reduce amount of liquid to 1/2 of the amount called for in your recipe.

Fresh vegetables produce the most desirable results. Potatoes, carrots, onions and garlic should be washed and cut in uniform pieces, then placed in the bottom of the crock. Canned and frozen vegetables take less time to cook and can produce overcooked dishes.

Ground beef should be browned and drained before slow cooking to remove grease.

Tender foods such as pasta, asparagus and snow peas should be added in the last hour of cooking.

Dairy products such as cheese, milk, and sour cream should be added in the last half hour of cooking.

Seafood such as shrimp, scallops, and fish should be added in the last 15-30 minutes of cooking.

CARE AND CLEANING

The removable stoneware crock and the lid are dishwasher safe. To clean the base, unplug and let cool, and then wipe it down with a damp cloth. Do not immerse the cord, plug or base in any liquid. Some slow cookers have steam vent holes in their lids; the Set & Forget Programmable Slow Cooker has a probe hole. If you are not inserting the probe for using probe mode, leave the hole open and do not plug it with paper towels or other objects. Vent holes allow steam to escape and the wattage of the unit has been adjusted to compensate for any heat loss.